Is everyone on the spectrum "disabled"?

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I can only speak for myself and struggles I have, I would say it is most definitely a disability to me.

Considering ASD is a "spectrum," this question is difficult. Autism is something that can be many different faces.

I, myself, consider myself to NOT be disabled. I am successful in my career, live on my own, and pay my bills (mostly successfully through auto-pay...argh). -Not all those on the ASD spectrum can say the same though.

It all has to do with how much of this gift was given to you, along with how much someone "sees" it as a disability. My parents never recognized my ADD or ASD, so I came up with systems that deal with the normal world. Eventually (through much hardship and lessons), I was able to integrate myself into the "social norm" and get along with those who didn't understand ASD.

Since I never saw myself as having a disability, I overcame it without knowing. Don't get me wrong - I had a hard, traumatizing childhood, but I feel I came out on top thanks to those who were willing to work with my quirks growing up.

Your mileage may vary, but ultimately it's up to the individual to decide whether or not their "quirks" are a disability. This applies to NTs along with ASDs...

-I feel my ASD is a strength, rather than a weakness... That's my view though - that view differs widely, however.

Welcome to WP Amishthunder.

I've always been labelled as a person with a disability. I suppose AS does make certain areas of life challenging, so yeah.

it depends on your strengths and weaknesses. if the weakness of your disability outweighs the strength of your abilities, then you will fall into a category that is nominable as "disabled" meaning that your satisfaction from what your life can provide is hindered by the severity of your imbalance between abilities and disabilities.

i am able to compensate well for my disabilities, but i certainly do have disabilities. i can not think in other peoples ways and will never know them well, but i can still get money from them for providing them with services that they value, and i can pay therefore for what i really like to do.
so i am on balance, not disabled, but it is just the abilities i have outweigh the disabilities.

I think even people on the higher functioning end of the spectrum experience disabling symptoms. I find that the distressing scenarios neurotypical people aren't as likely to experience like getting stressed by loud noises, sensory overload leading to meltdowns and getting fatigued from increased levels of anxiety and thought processes in social situations are moderately disabling for me. In other areas we can thrive and excel though, and are far more 'able' in them than more neurotypical people. I like to think we're just different; our brains process things differently so some things we do better in and others we do not. For me it also depends on how I'm feeling - sometimes I'm OK at things like socialising and visiting busy places, other times I just can't face them at all.

We each have our talents and challenges in different areas. Where one person on the spectrum might be talented, another could be challenged. Where one person on the spectrum is struggling, another person could be well off. The thing about the human brain is that each brain is unique, whether people are on the spectrum or not. Each person on the spectrum has gifts and challenges that are very unique to themselves. I have my gifts and I have my challenges, so I am actually disabled in some areas. That doesn't bother me because everybody here has things that they are good at and everybody here has things they need to work on.

yes they are.

I, honestly, don't feel "disabled" most of the time. This is because I don't hang out in situation where my disabled status would show itself.

I do not understand why some individuals, and many people in some groups (notably Deaf, Asperger's, and non-disabled people), have a hard time understanding what having a disability means. Disability means a physical or mental condition that limits a person's senses, movements, or activities. However, it does not mean all or nothing in life.

Someone can be deaf and disabled and still hear sounds. Someone can be blind and disabled and still see light. Someone can be wheelchair bound and disabled and still win a race at the Olympics. Someone can be learning disabled and still be very intelligent. Any one of these can also have a job, family, friends, and very fulfilling life.

You can also enjoy your life specifically because of how your disability affects your experience. People in the Deaf culture specifically enjoy how they experience life being deaf. Some people in the Asperger's community have said the same.

But since the definition of a disability never denies the possibility of any of this, and since all of these people are "limited in either their senses, movements, OR activities" as evidence in their diagnoses, then they have a disability. The definition also never says anything about a balance of being more disabled than abled, or still being limited despite accommodations, workarounds, and coping skills.

Certain organizations that help the disabled may use different criteria but I believe they use the same definition of disabled. For example, Social Security may use the criteria of a) the person is disabled, AND b) that disability prevents them from working. Another example, the Americans with Disabilities Act for the recommendation/protection of a Service Dog may use the criteria of a) the person is disabled, AND b) that disability can be mitigated by the tasks or work of a trained Service Dog.

_________________
31st of July, 2013
Diagnosed: Autism Spectrum Disorder, Auditory-Verbal Processing Speed Disorder, and Visual-Motor Processing Speed Disorder.

Weak Emerging Social Communicator (The Social Thinking-­Social Communication Profile by Michelle Garcia Winner, Pamela Crooke and Stephanie Madrigal)

"I am silently correcting your grammar."

Good question, and the replies show the spectrum is wide.

I had hesitated long about seeking assessment because I saw no obvious sign of disability, having been employed call my adult life, missed out on long term harmful relationships, and as a result I had chosen a middle way between self assessment and ful medical diagnosis.

However, with age comes the thought that were it not for the various favourable circumstances I have enjoyed the story might have been different.

Being generally good in the academic way opened doors, and to education where there was a focus that way and most of the school was oriented that way. That really masked the traits and gave us all interesting things to talk about. I am sure that avoided the long term bullying too many people hey in school.

It wsd good fortune that the strong interests included electronics and to some extent music, enough to wing an A level in music to match the ones in physics and maths and help the way to a technical role in an organisation with a wider remit than just technology which gave greater job security and protected one of the autistic profile's vulnerable points - change and insecurity. The firm had a somewhat paternalistic tradition which gave some resilience against the social shortcomings ; while noting "Social skills generally lacking" on an annual report, they allowed some time to attend a course of fortnightly counselling sessions which helped built some skills and strategies. Things could have gone a much less happy way in other organisations.

With no category of Aspergers 40 years ago all I, parents and teachers had to work with wad a spread of weak points and strong points. The actual details rather than a label

Another bit of good fortune was finding low stress social circles around interests - the cycle touring club, the Friends' Meeting House, the Dharma Centre. The Autistic profile spared me going out to a places like Down the Pub and acquiring the sort of "Mates" who actually just waste time or get you into trouble.

Looking back over life I suspect there is a lot of truth in the morning "Social Model" of disability. Lots of circumstances came together and created an environment where that autistic profile did not lead to bring disabled, yet take away parents or teachers who saw the pattern of strong points, worked on them and generally worked patiently with the weak spots and things could have worked put quite differently - long term unemployment, not getting independent, not getting the privacy where I can relax with my chosen stims without having to worry about others finding put and judging harshly. Those stims do srrm to work maintaining a generally low stress state of mind, or at least helping me return to a lie stress state.

I have never considered myself disabled and hate it when people refer to me as "disabled," "special," or worst of all, "the disabled," i.e. "stop ridiculing the disabled."

I like Rowan's take on it very much.

I believe he's basically saying that "one should do one's best with what they got."

If somebody doesn't like me because I seem weird, disabled, whatever, then screw them.

I've thought that way since I was very young.

Thank you for your feedback Kraftie.

I hadn't thought about the angle in your feedback. Looking g at things in that way may well help so.done find the energy or sheer stubornnes to get through despite the blind spots and things which don't come naturally.

For my own thinking, the largest consideration when I wrote the piece was gratitude for those things which had come together out of which I was able to make good use.